Distant Horizons
by Late For The Sky
Summary: Life is never easy for the Winchesters or their allies, especially when certain factions of Heaven and Hell keep sticking their noses into their business… Massively AU from end of Season 7 on. Sequel to 'Uncharted Territories'.


Dean and Castiel's recounting of what had happened in Purgatory lasted for nearly three hours, what with all the questions the others had. Dean had a question of his own for Sam when they reached a specific point in the retelling. "Sam, when I was in the Trial of the Soul, I heard you say something about someone called Adam," he said. "You weren't talking about..."

Wincing, Sam shook his head. "No. He's still... That was Adam Warburton, a ten-year-old we'd rescued a few days before. He was camping with his parents when they were killed during a thunderstorm by a rugaru we'd been hunting. He's living with his grandparents in Vermont now."

"Huh. Well, anyways, after that..."

Once they were done, Sam collected the plates and took them back to the kitchen, putting them in the dishwasher. Inias showed Dean and Castiel to free rooms, bidding them goodnight. He returned to Sam, giving him a nod once he found him. "They've got rooms," he told him.

Sam hummed. "Thanks," he said, leaning against the counter. "That's one hell of a story they told."

"Definitely," Inias agreed. "Still, I suppose it's kind of comforting to know what happens to angels after we die. That's something I've always wondered."

"Same here," Sam said. He ran a hand through his hair. "I'm going to turn in for the night. See you in the morning."

"See you then," Inias replied. "I've got the night watch anyways, so I'll be in the study."

Sam nodded absently and then headed upstairs. Time passed as it always did, with Dean and Castiel settling back into the swing of things now that they were back where they were supposed to be. Several months later, the perimeter wards tripped early one evening, alerting Lee, Inias, and Castiel, who were all tied to them. Castiel was off on a hunt with Sam and Dean in Oregon, so it fell to Inias and Lee to check it out. Garth, who was currently in residence, went along with them, taking a shotgun just in case.

"Wonder what it is," he said as they walked. Lee shrugged.

"Could be anything," she said. "I'm not getting any alarm vibes from whatever it is, so it's not likely going to be a demon or anything. It's probably just some passing travelers who stopped for direct..." She trailed off with a frown as they approached the end of the driveway. Five people stood there, all looking decidedly bedraggled. One, a dark-skinned man with close-cropped hair, stepped forward when he saw them approach, but didn't go any farther than the line demarcated by the wards.

"Hello?" he called out. "Can we talk to you, please?"

Inias and Lee exchanged looks before Inias walked forward and let his flashlight play over their faces. "Duvael. Suriel. Radueriel. Sophia. And... Naomi? What are you all doing here?"

"Inias?" Duvael, the man who had called out to them, sighed in relief. "Oh, thank the Father. We had hoped it would be someone friendly when we saw the Enochian wards, but we couldn't be sure. Please, can we come in?"

Inias glanced back at Lee, who winced before coming into the light. "Answer his question," she said. "Why are you here?"

"Alinariel?!" Suriel breathed, her eyes widening. "We thought you were dead! After Josiah left-"

"What do you mean, 'Josiah left'?" Lee asked, distracted. "The last I knew, he was with all of you."

"He left about twenty years ago," Radueriel replied. "He got summons from someone high up and never returned. We initially thought he'd been sent to retrieve you, but obviously not."

"Um, sorry to interrupt, but can someone tell me what's going on?" Garth asked. Lee blinked and then shook her head.

"Don't worry," she said. "They're friends. Or at least, they used to be. We were once part of the same garrison." She focused on Suriel again. "Why are you here? And that's the last time I'm going to ask before I make you leave."

"We came because it's chaos in Heaven right now," Sophia said. She was tall with hair that hung in deftly curled spirals; her vessel was of Grecian origin, much like her name. "There aren't any clear-cut leaders, not since Raphael was killed and Castiel... disappeared after playing God. The healers and the archivists were left alone, but the warriors..."

Duvael smiled grimly. "I only made it out alive because I was on Archives duty that day. We're the only ones that're left of our garrison."

"And Naomi? What's she doing here? She had nothing to do with our garrison."

"No, I didn't," Naomi agreed, "but I couldn't stay in Heaven any longer. Like Sophia said, it's in chaos up there. There are some who are trying to give orders, but they're conflicting and messy at best." She shook her head. "I would have stayed and tried to fix it, but my department was nearly decimated. Besides, I don't have the power. I would have likely only made it worse."

"It's worse than that," Radueriel intoned gravely. "There have been some... unsettling rumors. The Four might be gone, but there are some lesser archangels still around. Word is that Metatron's been trying to gather power. For what reason, we don't know, but it can't be good."

Lee snorted sharply. "Right," she said, "you guys had better come in. It looks like we've got a lot to talk about." She waved her free hand, welcoming them in. "We've got plenty of bedrooms and places for you to stay. I should warn you, though, that this place is pretty much a haven for hunters. Don't try to antagonize them. They're good allies, and I trust most of them."

"Hunters?" Suriel asked, intrigued. "You've allied yourself with them? Is that wise?"

Lee smiled wryly. "A prophet said it was a good idea. He's turned out to be right so far. That reminds me..." She turned to Garth. "Any word on Kevin's whereabouts?"

Garth nodded. "He called me earlier. He's going to meet up with Sam, Dean, and Cas in Oregon, and then they're going to bring him back here once everything's taken care of there."

"Good. It'll be for the best that he's somewhere safe rather than anywhere Crowley can get him," Inias said as they walked.

"It will." Lee glanced back at the others, who were trailing behind them a few paces, and then sighed softly. "Well, this should turn out to be interesting."

"Yes, it should," Inias agreed, keeping his voice down as well. "If Metatron is really trying to gather power, we should keep our eyes and ears open."

"I agree." Lee held the door open for everyone before going inside herself. Inias led the others to the living room, inviting them to sit down. He closed the doors on the far side of the room while Lee took care of the ones they had all entered through; Garth excused himself with a small smile, saying he needed to get some dinner.

"So," Inias began as Garth shut the door behind him, "Metatron. That's not something I would've expected."

"You've been away for a while," Duvael said. "He moved quickly."

"I'd say so, given that it's only been three months here." Inias shook his head. "I don't get it. What does he gain by trying to gather power? He's not a leader by any stretch of the imagination, minor archangel or not."

"No," Naomi replied, "but he thinks he is."

Radueriel rolled his eyes. "He's a glorified secretary," he drawled. "He's no more fit to be a leader than a fish would be to fly like a bird."

Suriel laughed. "Very true."

"What are we going to do about him?" Lee asked, leaning back in her chair. "I mean, you said that all you've heard are rumors. If we don't have any concrete evidence, there's not much we can do at the moment."

"It's safer down here than it is in Heaven right now," Sophia said. "We'd rather be here than there."

"We do have room," Inias said, glancing at Lee for confirmation, "but what're your plans? We're not always here. We help out with hunts and healing when needed."

"We can lend our help," Duvael offered, looking at the others before continuing on. "If you're willing to give us shelter, it's the least we could do."

Naomi nodded. "It is," she agreed, leaning forward with her arms braced on her thighs. "This place... The warding is very good, but we can help expand it. After all, the more power in them, the better."

Lee ran a hand over her face, thinking. "I wouldn't say no to help with the wards," she mused, "and we could always use extra help on hunts." She sighed. "Fine. We'll make the room, but please try to get along with the hunters who come and go. They've gotten used to Inias, Castiel, and me, but-"

"Wait. You said Castiel?"

"Yes, I did. Why?"

"You trust him?" Suriel asked, looking unapologetic for interrupting Lee. "After what he did?"

"He's proved his worth to me, and both Sam and Dean vouch for him," Lee said simply. She shrugged. "I wasn't there to see what he did, but I've forgiven him nonetheless. He's paid his due penance; I'm not about to exact any more than that." She gave all of them a hard look. "There's to be no fighting while you're under this roof. If you have a problem that can't be taken care of any other way except physically, do it elsewhere. This is neutral ground. I won't tolerate my home being used as a battleground, so leave all your prejudices and problems at the door."

"We'll keep it in mind," Radueriel promised.

"See that you do. I know most of us were part of the same garrison, but it's been over two thousand years since I've seen any of you save for Inias," Lee finished. "It's not going to be that easy to work together again, not right away."

"We understand," Suriel said quietly, a faint note of disappointment in her voice. Lee smiled lopsidedly at her before changing the subject. They talked late into the night, catching up and laying out plans.

Around dawn, Lee went out to check the wards, as was her habit. Suriel accompanied her, walking at her side. They were at the easternmost ward-stone when Suriel cleared her throat.

"Alinariel..."

"Just call me Lee," Lee said absently as she reinforced the wards. "What's up?"

Suriel sighed. "When we left, we took what little we could in the time we had," she said, putting her hand in her pocket. "I didn't know if we'd ever come across you, but I couldn't leave it behind. Josiah gave it to me for safekeeping before he left. I just wish he could've given it to you himself." She drew out a folded linen cloth and then handed it over to Lee, who dusted off her hands and straightened up before taking it.

Lee carefully unfolded the cloth, noting that whatever was inside it was lightweight. She drew in a sharp breath when the cloth was open and what lay inside was revealed. A silver chain lay shining dully in the light of dawn, the deep blue of the lapis lazuli pendant hanging from it swirled slightly with the faint gold of pyrite. Lee picked it up with shaking fingers, tears threatening to slip from her eyes.

"He always said that lapis reminded him of me," she said, lightly running her thumb over the smooth surface of the stone. She laughed, the sound jittery with tears. "Because of my eyes. He was always overly poetic. He swore..." She paused, clearing her throat. "He always said he was going to get me something with lapis for a mating token. The first of many."

Lee put the necklace on, the pendant coming to rest just below the hollow of her throat. "You're right. I wish he could've given it to me himself. Thank you for giving me this."

"You're welcome." Suriel drew Lee into a tight hug, wrapping both arms and unseen wings around her. "We've missed you. _I've _missed you. I'm so glad that you're safe and sound, even if it's here on Earth."

Lee hugged her back just as tightly. "I'm glad you're safe as well," she replied. "I've missed all of you so much. I wish I could've visited you, but orders were orders."

Suriel laughed bitterly at that and released Lee. "Orders." She scoffed, shaking her head. "I can see the need for them, but they've been few and far between lately, and those have been confusing at best."

She looked at the ward-stone and then up at the sky with a sigh. "Should we go inside? That was the last one."

Lee nodded. "Yeah, we can do that. I can show you the library, and we can make sure the others are doing okay as well." She started back to the house, the sky above fading into brilliant pinks, golds, and oranges. Suriel followed after her, watching closely. They'd once been close, she and Alinariel, almost as close as blood sisters sometimes were. Back then, before the assignment had come down, Alinariel had been a healer, trained under Raphael herself. She'd been good at it, too, though she'd never been a battle-healer.

Suriel couldn't help but to think that the time spent on Earth had changed Alinariel. It showed in how she walked, how she talked, her very presence. Whether or not that change was a good thing... Suriel wasn't sure. She could only watch and learn.


End file.
